Electric signal for railways.



H. J. WARTHEN. v ELECTRIC SIGNAL FOR RAILWAYS. AAPPL'IoAcrIoN r-ILBDLL/12h24', 1909. RENEWED rms. 5, 1914.

UNiTED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

'HA'RBY J'. WABTHEN, 0F WASHINGTON, DISTRICT 0F COLUMBIA. I

.ELECTRJIC SIGNAL FOR RAIIIWAYS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 17, 1914.

Application led March v24, 1909, Serial No. 485,527. Renewed Iebruaryt,1914. Serial No. 816,842.

To all whom it may conc-cm:

Be itkiiown that I, HARRY J. vVV Ai1 fiiarisi-I, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at Washington, in the District of Columbia,haveinvented an Electric Signal for Railways, of which the following isa specification.

My invention is an improvement in signal devices Vfor railways, andrelates more especially to those devices of this character which areoperated by an electric circuit and controlled automatically by a trainas 1t passes over each block or section of track.

The primary object of my present invention is to provide an electricsignal system for railways which is operated on a closed circuit inconnection with make and break devices, whereby a train' passingonto andalong the-rails of any block or section of the railway will affect thecircuit in certain blocks in both directions from the train, in

such manner asto establish a signal condition in said blocks, the makingand breaking `of the circuit controlling the signals being eiiectedautomatically.

A further object of my invention is to provide an electric signal systemin which the tracks of the railway are included in the circuits, so thatthe displacement of a rail by a washout or other cause will so affectsuch circuitsas to present a signal condition in the' adjoining blocksor sections of the railway.

'In the present instance I employ electro- .magnets' and armatures asthe make and break devices, each block or section of track which co-acttherewith.- Fig. 3

having a pair of electro-magnets which are electrically connectedthrough the rails and when energized serve to electrically connect.their armatures, to ether with supplemental .circuits each inclu`ductor, track rails ingk a signal rail or conand theconnected armaturesof certain electro-magnets, whereby such supplemental circuit is eitherclosed according to the position ot' said armatures and condition of theremaining connections; all as hereinafter fully described and set forthin the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specificationz-F igure 1 is a diagram," illustrating an application of my invention.Fig. 2 is `an enlarged detail view of a pair of electro-magnets andpartsis a detail view of a set of armatures.

open or gravity when said shown in the present instance only tive itwill be understood, of

blocks and stations course, that in practice the number will depend uponthe length of the railway and the distance apart the stations areplaced. The stations shown in the drawings will be referred to in thesespeciiications as A, B, C, D, and E, respectively, and are so indicatedon said drawings.

5 and indicate the track rails, and these are adapted to form theelectric conductors for the signaling system, one of these rails, as 5,being disconnected, electrically, at each station by means of aninsulatingblock 7, and also electrically disconnected at a pointintermediate the stations by insulating blocks 8, for the purposeshereinafter explained. The other rail, and forms a common conductor forboth the main and supplemental circuits hereinafter referred to.

At each station-are located two electromagnets or relays, 9 and 10, ofconventional form, and in connection with these electro- -magnets thereare employed armatures 12 and V13, respectively, one of said armatures,

as 12, having t w o conducting elements, as L12a and 12b, which areinsulated from each Each armature is pivother (see Fig. 3). oted at itsouter end, as at 14, and when attractedby the magnet is in contact witha conductor-plate 15, the current froma supplemental'circuit may pass'from one armature to the other. The conductor-plate is provided withcontactpoints, 16, in the form of set-screws threaded through said plateto forni a means of adjustment, as ment of the armatures away from themagnetsis limited by means of suitably insulated stops 17 ,and .as thelarmatures are pivotedbelow themagnets they will drop by magnets becomedeiiergized, respectively. `l

The electro-magnets 9 andV 10 areenergizedvby batteries 18, which are soplaced or connected that the current pass through a length'of the saidmagnets,

and in the present instance the connections are such that the' tworelays'V as 6, is continuous 4 common to both, so that will be obvious.'The movewill havejto 4track-rails `t0 armature 12 is connected a wire,as

at adjacentstaticns and at opposite ends of the salue4 block areconnected in a single lseries circuit. To this end each batter?,T 18 isconnected around theinsulating joint 8 to the track rail sections 5-5,'so that'curf rent will pass from one side of the battery through railsection 5, wire 19, to and through relay 9, wire 20, back alone rail 6,wire 20 at the other end of the bloclt, relay 10, wire 19, and

tion 5 tothe other side of the battery, thus maintaining both rails 'ofthe track and' botlirelavs in a permanently closed series circuitartwill be understood of course that a considerL ble distance intervenes'between' stations and that the lengths of the .blocks will bedetermined by the traic conditions in'each-particular case. When' altrain passes along the track it will short circuit the battery 1S froma rail-section 5 to the rail 6, through the wheels of the train,cuttingout one of .the electro-magnets, according to which rail 5 the train ison; for instance, a train passing to the right from station on to therail-section 5 beyond will cut out the electro-magnet l() of thisstation, the current then passing from the positive element of thebatt-eryv to said rail-section 5, through the wheels and axle of thetrain to track-section 6, along the latter to the wire 20 and into theelectromagnet 9 at station B, from said magnet by wire 19 to the otherrail-section 5, and along said rail to the negative element4 of thebattery. When the train passes on to rail-section 5 between said batteryand station B it will in like manner cut out magnet 94 of the latterstation and restore the energy to magnet 10 of station A. 1t will 4beseen, therefore,-tliat a block or section of track which controls themagnets at each station extends from` the point S at one side of saidstation to the point 8 at the other side thereof, so that a trainpassing between these points will denergize either one of the magnets 9and 10` ot' 4the station in that block according to which rail-sectionthe train is on, and the denergizing of either of said magnets willbreak the supplemental circuit, hereinafter described, which passesthrough the armatures and conductor plate of said magnets. A

At e'a'ch station armature 13 is connected by al wire 21 to track-rail6,` and to one of the conducting elements of the companion 22, whichextends from this station to the second station beyond in one direction,while a second wire, as23 extends to the second station in the otherdirection from the other conducting element ot -said armature 12; forinstance, wire 22 from armature 12 of station C. is led to station A,while wire 23 from said armature is led to station E, and at thesestations A and E each wire is Vconnected with a battery 24, which latteris return along the other section in both directions danger. 1twill beperfectly obvious,`how

:licensee connected by wire 25 to track-rail 6. 1n the presentI instancethere is located at the'station and includedin each supplemental circuita short rail 27 and an electricallyo'perated signal or lamp 26. Eachsupplemental circuit between any .two stations therefore' includes thefollowing` connections: between station A and station C, from battery2,4 at station A to short-rail 27 to wire` 22, to armature 12 at stationC, through conductorplate 15 to armature 13, by' wire 21 to track.- rail6,l` and through'the latter back to battery 24 at said stationA.- Thesupplemental circuit between stations E and C includes exactly similarconnections; and it will be noted, therefore', that should eitherarmature drop at station C bot-h these circuits, to station A and tostation E, would be broken. These supplemental circuits establish a sig-'nal condition whereby when a train occupies any block a warning signalwill be displayed to an approaching train. at the second station in eachdirection from said block.

As the track-rails 5 and 6 'form conductors for both the workingcircuits which energize the electro-magnets and the supplementalcircuits which operate the signals, the displacement of a rail of thetrack will establish a signal condition at the adjoining stations; forinstance the displacement oi' a rail of the track-rail .6 will breakboth the working and supplemental circuits passing at that point,while'the displacement ot a rail of any rail-section 5 will break theworking circuit passing through said railsection.

The system as above described is applicable to single-track roads onwhich trains niove in both directions, and on which it is desirable toestablish warning signalicondifrom `the point of I that my inventioncan, with slight modiiications,be employed to equal advantage on doubletrack roads where the tratlic is in one direction only, and where, as agen'- eral thing, it is only necessary to provide against rear endcollisions.

Vhile 1 have shown, for the sake of illusever,

tration, fixed signals 26 and batteries 2410- cated at each station, andwhile my system is admirably adapted for operating such wayside signals,it will be understood that the system is particularly designed for usein connection with automatic signaling and train controlling devices.located upon the Htrain itself. Such devices include a contact shoecarried by the locomotive and adapted to engage the short rails V27 4ateach station, and also includercab carried signaling and controllingcircuits, and one or more batteries. In a copending application SerialNo. 485,528, of even date herewith, 1 have shown and described such `acab signaling .25 e Y l p 2. Inan automatic electmcyrailway' signal.

- 4.nalng .andf the o'ther of said Vrelays:

for use -in connection. with the present system. 4 't While I have usedthe word battery .throughout the specification and' claims, it. Willofcourse be understood-thatLinean to include' primary or I' claim as` newand desiregtosecure system, the combination {with-ra 'track-lv dividedinto 'block s, a; .signal 'stationv atA each lock junction l'pint, awirexextfending from each, signal station-.to a ,station inl advanceand-to.- astation .in therear, suchwlres co- '11.- .In an automaticelectric'railwaysig` 'operating lwith a' r'ail o the track to form'signal circuits, ,'Ineansg forv normally :connecte ing saldwir'es to'eachother andto .the trackrail, and meansfconltrolled `vby n thepresence. of a Atrain in a-bloclgadjacent the station forvdisconnecting,.said lwires [from each other and from the rail,"thereby openingbth-S'ig-, nal-circuits. l

,in'gl system, 4thefcombination with a track.

dividedinto blocks, a .s'ignal` stat i on at each block "j uns-:tion'-point, .a frelay connected to the rails atze'achend V f ea 'eh block,vwliere-by'v there.' are twov relays. adjacent eachf station, one of said'relays ha ng -a' single armature,- havin a pair of arniature's:electrically insulated but me# chanicallyconnected, a"w-ire`, extendingfrom said singlearmaturefto.. a 'rail of the track,

copies Washington, 1). CJ

and -train controlling apparatus, designed` yIlla'tures' secondarybatteries',-gen"- erators, or other suitable ,sources of current. i l'Havingthus described my invent-ion,"what .10. l ters-Patent, isc-ewhereby, when'v -a'ndfits armature falls away, the circuit 'to V"bothsignal stations vis-interrupted'. v 45 1" 3. In an electric Signatsystem .for railways,V a track dividedinto blocks'a signal Astation foreachblock, a relay connected to the rails .of each Landj the otherarmature, all of said armatures being normally magnetically suspended,aV signal circuit extendingfroln each-station to-a station thereof, eachof such'c'ircuitsn o! this patentmay be obtained'-for ve cents each, by

a second wire extending-#from one of the aradvance, a

said 'armatures are normally inengagement, elther 'relay 1s,derierglzed,

block at each end'thereof, whereby there are two relays Yadjacent. eachof's'aid. pair to a signal station in third wire .extending 'from the:'otherof said armatures" to .a signal station in therear, anda platewith which all three of' station, normally closed track .circuitsenergiz'ing said relays, one of said relaysbeing, i provided --witha:pair of armatures electrically insulated of said relays having .asingle onA each side spectively, andsaid sinofle armature being.

HARRY J,- WARTHEN.

Witnesses:

W. S. DUVALL,- H. L. BEALL.

Vaddressing"'the Commissioner ot Patents.l

but mechanically connected,

